Inditex
Profile
Inditex is the largest fashion retailer in the world, best known for its clothing brand Zara. Founded in 1975 by Ortega Amancio, Inditex has epitomized the age of cheap, disposable fashion - made in contract sweatshops and sold for throwaway prices in the West. In 2011, a government raid in Sao Paulo, Brazil, revealed that company contractors were using Bolivian immigrants working for 7-12 U.S. cents a piece. In 2017, workers at the Bravo Tekstil factory in Istanbul, Turkey, went into Zara stores to add tags to garments that read: “I made this item you are going to buy, but I didn’t get paid for it.”
apparel, footwear, sportswear, accessories
Violations
Violation data on Inditex is still being gathered at this time.
Stories
Activism
Myanmar’s Defiant Garment Workers Demand That Fashion Pay Attention
Elizabeth Paton | The New York Times | April 6, 2021
Ma Moe Sandar Myint is the leader of one of Myanmar’s largest garment worker unions. Until recently, the 37-year-old mother of three and former sewing machine operator would spend her days representing workers with labor complaints and helping members of the Federation of Garment Workers Myanmar unionize their factories.
Romanian garment workers win wage battle.
Michelle Russell | October 26, 2020
The Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) has welcomed a decision by three fashion companies to ensure a group of workers in Romania were paid full back wages after a campaign went viral.
& Lawsuits
Investigations into Inditex supply chains raises worker concerns.
Chris Remington | Eco Textile News | November 20, 2019
An investigation launched by the Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) has followed the supply chain of fashion giant Inditex and its flagship brand Zara, in a case which typifies the dire state of affairs for workers across much of the global fashion industry.
Zara parent company accused of using Bolivian slave labour in Brazil
Tom Hennigen | Irish Times | August 19, 2011
THE PARENT company of Spanish clothing retailer Zara is under investigation in Brazil after a local supplier was accused by the country’s labour ministry of using slave labour.
Spanish unions cry foul as Inditex shuts stores
Victoria Waldersee, Clara-Laeila Laudette | Reuters | March 1, 2021
Inditex (ITX.MC) staff in Spain say they are being forced out as the owner of fast-fashion brand Zara rolls out its plan to shut up to 1,200 stores worldwide, despite a company agreement with Spanish unions to project jobs.
Bravo workers forced to take partial payments from Zara, Mango, Next
Mirjam | Clean Clothes Campaign | September 4, 2018
Clean Clothes Campaign sends our solidarity to the Bravo workers, who have showed remarkable bravery and demonstrated an unwaivering commitment to the principles of fairness and justice.
Financials
Note: Not a complete list.
Croctail Subsidiary Tool using the CorpWatch API - This API uses automated parsers to extract the subsidiary relationship information from Exhibit 21 of companies' 10-K filings with the SEC.
& Evasion
Inditex €585m (U.S.$626M) tax sidestep could have big ripple effects
Neil Hodge | Compliance Week | January 17, 2018
Following in the footsteps of Apple, Amazon, Starbucks, and McDonalds, the world’s biggest clothing retailer Inditex has come under fire from Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) for using “aggressive” techniques to sidestep at least €585m (U.S.$626M) in taxes between 2011 and 2014.
Inditex accused of dodging 585 million euros in taxes
Vivian Hendriksz | Fashion United | December 8, 2016
Inditex may be the world's leading fashion retailer, but that certainly does not mean the Spanish conglomerate is immune to allegations concerning its working practices and its business operations.
Procurement
CorpWatch is still gathering procurement data on Inditex at this time.